Eyeing an Exchange

A traditional Japanese dish.

October in Japan is the month where the Japanese people say the Autumn appetite begins. In general, the Japanese people are foodies and this is evident in the amount of TV programs that are dedicated to the preparation, making and eating of a variety of foods. Check this NHK world website dedicated to food if you want to find out more.

EYEING A BITCOIN+ YEN EXCHANGE

Let me now start by telling how I began looking for a Bitcoin+ exchange. Being that I live in Japan, I wanted an exchange that could be readily available to accept yen without having to convert it into another currency like U.S. dollars. I wanted to find a large and reputable exchange so that I would feel a bit secure depositing money there. It also had to have an English version. I checked the exchanges for what other altcoins they dealt with besides Bitcoin since I was interested in forming a diversified portfolio. In my stock account, I have found that having a diversified portfolio is a safe investment but not necessarily the biggest yielding one. If you are interested in trading stocks, Grant Henning’s, The Value and Momentum Trader and Trading Stock by the Numbers, offer insights to investing that may be of value for you.

I ended up opening up accounts at three different exchanges: BitFlyer, CoinCheck and Kraken. Two of these exchanges are headquartered in Japan and the other in the U.S.. Together they provide access to many altcoins although I have ended up only using the exchanges that are based in Tokyo for proximity reasons. Having two exchanges allows you be more flexible with your trades and spreading out your money or coins in case a problem develops with one. I have personally received emails of downtime for servicing from both exchanges but fortunately they haven’t occurred at the same time and date and hasn’t affected any of my trading. If you are looking for a Bitcoin+ exchange, try Best Bitcoin Exchange for a listing of exchanges. Please be sure to do your research on any exchange that appeals to you to find out more information. In my case, besides using the web, personal contacts from colleagues, who were already vested in cryptocurrencies, helped me decide on my Bitcoin+ exchanges.

Some Bitcoin+ exchanges offer accounts with only a minimal amount of data provided by the person applying. In Japan, since the government has recognized Bitcoin as a legal method of payment, there are other requirements that must be met in order to establish an account. It took me about a week to setup my accounts. I recommend that if your Bitcoin+ exchange supports Two Factor Authentication (2FA) it would be a good decision to include that security step.